by Daniel Youngblood

SIX-MAN REWIND: Area schools see mixed results as league play gets underway across Big Country

Week 7 featured a fair number of high profile games, both in and outside of district play. Unfortunately, our area schools came out on the losing end of several of the biggest matchups.

Water Valley dropped its first game of the year to unbeaten Menard, red-hot Newcastle was cooled off by Whiteface and Westbrook lossed a tough matchup to Lamesa Klondike to kick off a brutal district schedule in three of the biggest games on last week’s slate.

Fortunately, there were some triumphs as well — the biggest being Richland Springs’ big district win over Cherokee.

Without further ado, let’s dive into those matchups and more in our weekly “Six-Man Rewind” column. We hope you enjoy this look back at last week’s action, and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for more information on your favorite team(s).

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Haskell’s Pinkerton takes the trifecta

After only seven weeks of football this season, Haskell senior quarterback Haegan Pinkerton has put his stamp on our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for a third time.

Believe me, we’d prefer to share the love. But with Pinkerton’s numbers, the teen has begun to turn this thing into a game of Monopoly, and he’s wearing the top hat. 

Pinkerton, who led the Indians to a 92-48 win over Munday, hit 13 of 14 passes for 264 yards and five touchdowns on Friday. But that’s only the beginning. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 8-2A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Crawford, Mart and Wortham win as Santo takes week off

Crawford 55, Hubbard 0 — The Pirates followed last week’s win over Mart with another key district victory, bringing Hubbard’s two-game district winning streak to an abrupt halt.

Crawford, which now has the inside track for the district No. 2 playoff seed, dominated the game from start to finish in improving to 4-3 overall and 2-1 in district play.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 7-2A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: San Saba, Mason and Coleman open league play with victories

San Saba 22, Johnson City 14 — Jason Everett ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns and Graden Lebow added 94 yards and a score as the Armadillos ran for all 300 of their yards in a big district win over the Eagles.

San Saba (4-2, 1-0), which didn’t attempt a pass in the victory, raced out to a 13-0 first-quarter lead and carried it into halftime, before holding off a Johnson City rally in the second half.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 4-2A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: Ballinger rallies past Forsan in thriller; Colorado City, Ozona also win

Ballinger 40, Forsan 36 — Wyatt Clemens passed for 313 yards and four touchdowns, hitting Hunter Kresta nine times for 163 yards and two of those scores to lead the Bearcats to a thrilling win over the previously unbeaten Buffaloes.

Clemens also ran for 74 yards and another TD as Ballinger (5-1, 2-0) amassed 482 yards of total offense. Pierson Nord (7-81 receiving) and Brody Wilde (2-46) also caught scoring passes for the Bearcats, who also got a rushing TD run from Malachi Bentley.

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by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 6-2A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Haskell, Seymour, Windthorst fighting for title

Haskell 92, Munday 48 — Haskell’s insane level of offensive production continued in an important district win over Munday. 

Haegan Pinkerton threw for 264 yards and five TDs and rushed for 179 yards and three more scores to lift the Indians (4-2, 2-0) who are in the thick of the district title chase. 

Munday fell to 5-2 and 1-2.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-3A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Tolar, Hamilton score comfortable wins; Dublin, Comanche and Eastland all fall

Tolar 49, Rio Vista 13 — Briton Rice had a big day throwing the football, and Kelvin Murray continued his outstanding season on the ground to lead the Rattlers to a convincing win over the Eagles.

With his team leading 20-7 at halftime, Murray ran for a pair of third-quarter TDs to push Tolar’s lead to 35-7 by the start of the fourth quarter. And Rice capped a productive night with a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to make it a 42-13 game, before Tanner Emery capped the scoring with a rushing TD.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-3A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Stanton blasts Anthony; Coahoma takes care of business against Alpine

Stanton 77, Anthony 0 — Karter Barrera (4-105 rushing), Vayden Pastrana (6-95) and Nicholas Isemann (5-75) all ran for two touchdowns to lead a 539-yard rushing effort as the Buffaloes blasted the Wildcats to open league play.

Eight different players ran for at least 40 yards for Stanton (2-4, 1-0), which also got rushing TDs from Hagan Hale (3-60), Zekeriah Trevino (3-51), Luis Anaya (6-41) and Jett Rivas (2-19) in the win.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-3A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: Wall, Early score lopsided wins to open league play

Wall 50, Llano 14 — Gunner King passed for 292 yards and five touchdowns while Hudson Surber received for 140 yards and three scores to lift the Hawks to a blowout win over the Yellowjackets.

Caden Sturm (19-106, 1TD rushing) and Evan Boehle (5-71, 1 TD receiving) also had productive games for Wall (6-1, 1-0), which built a 36-0 led by halftime and took a shutout into the fourth quarter.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 4-4A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Mineral Wells, Graham pick up district wins; Brock tops Glen Rose in nondistrict action

Mineral Wells 27, Iowa Park 24 — Jordan Johnson ran for two touchdowns, and Javon Johnson passed for one TD and ran for another to lift the Rams to a thrilling win over the Hawks.

Mineral Wells (6-0, 1-0) raced out to a 20-9 halftime lead and held off a second-comeback by Iowa Park, which narrowed a 27-17 deficit to 27-24 by the first minute of the final period.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 2-4A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Pecos rallies past Big Spring; Monahans pulls away from Snyder

Pecos 33, Big Spring 24 — The Eagles outscored the Steers 26-14 over the final three quarters to rally for a two-score win in the district opener for both teams.

Pecos (4-2, 1-0), which ran for two touchdowns, passed for two touchdowns and hit a pair of field goals, pulled ahead 20-17 by halftime and extended that advantage to 30-24 by the start of the fourth quarter.

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by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 4-3A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Breckenridge, Holliday, Jacksboro win districtr openers

Breckenridge 55, Wichita Falls City View 23 — The Buckaroos (1-5, 1-0) rallied from a 23-13 halftime deficit with 42 unanswered points in a huge second half to earn their first win of 2026. 

Breckenridge will face a far tougher test next week when it plays host to Jacksboro (5-1, 1-0) and former BHS coach Casey Hubble. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME REPORT: Abilene High football team wins shootout over upset-minded Frenship Memorial squad

Photos by Susanna Jackson, HubCityPreps.com

WOLFFORTH — The Abilene High football team has won in a number of different ways this season. On Friday, it took a shootout to get past an upset-minded Frenship Memorial squad.

The Eagles piled up 544 yards of total offense, scoring early and often to escape Peoples Bank Stadium with a 55-41 win and a 3-0 record in District 2-5A Division I play.

Abilene High (4-2), which came in averaging 27.8 points, never trailed after answering an early Memorial field goal with its first of eight touchdowns. But leading by a single score on four occasions in the second half, the Eagles couldn’t breathe easily until quarterback Tristan Beal busted loose for a 62-yard TD run with 5:26 to provide the final points of the night.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Second-half shutout fuels Wylie football team to 27-13 win over Wichita Falls Memorial

Hosting an explosive Wichita Falls Memorial squad that came in with the highest scoring average in District 2-5A Division II, the Wylie coaching staff was bound and determine to avoid getting into a shootout with the Mavericks on Friday at Hugh Sandifer Stadium.

After a competitive first half, the Bulldogs made good on that plan, outscoring the visitors 14-0 in the second half of an impressive 27-13 victory.

Wylie (4-2 overall) limited Memorial to 271 total yards — just 33 of those after halftime — to stay unbeaten in league play at 2-0. The Mavericks, who came in averaging 48.5 points per game, mustered just one first down in the second half in falling to 3-4 overall and 1-2 in district action.

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by Evan Ren

BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Stamford tops Albany 55-27 as Bulldogs roll up 531 total yards

STAMFORD — Upon studying his game film on Saturday, Stamford coach Wayne Hutchinson will no doubt find some things to correct from Friday’s 55-27 win over Albany in the Big Country Preps Game of the Week. 

But in the aftermath of the important District 7-2A DII win over his area rival, nobody wore a bigger smile at Bill Anderson Stadium than Hutchinson, whose Bulldogs (5-2, 3-0) are now in a solid position to challenge Goldthwaite for the league championship.  

Miles Follis threw for 317 yards and two scores and Slayden Young rushed for 133 yards and two more TDs to lead Stamford, which built a 34-7 lead by the third quarter.

The Lions (4-2, 1-1), who scored 20 of their 27points in the second half, were led by Clay Chapman, who threw for 267 yards and two scores and rushed for 74 yards and two more TDs. Albany saw two scoring chances slip away early in the first half with two lengthy drives ending on downs at the Stamford 29 and 33-yard lines.

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

GAME STORY: No. 2 Waco La Vega blitzes Brownwood 49-14 in District 13-4A DII opener

BROWNWOOD — Jeryl Brixey ultimately wants the Brownwood defense to maintain focus and play at a high level, regardless of what the Lions’ offense is doing.

But the Lions showed Friday night that they’re not close to where Brixey, their second-year head football coach, hopes they’ll be someday.

Waco La Vega quarterback Kourtney Parr carved up the Brownwood defense, completing 17 of 20 passes for 274 yards and three touchdowns, as the Class 4A Division II No. 2-ranked Pirates beat the Lions 49-14 at Gordon Wood Stadium.

Unbeaten La Vega improved to 6-0 overall after winning the District 13-4A Division II opener while Brownwood fell to 2-4.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Pair of defensive scores help Abilene Cooper pull away from shorthanded Lubbock Cooper

For the better part of three quarters Friday, the Cooper Cougars were on the verge of falling victim to a trap game during District 2-5A Division II play against 0-5 Lubbock Cooper — which entered the night at Shotwell Stadium with four losses of at least 23 points this year.

Leading just 7-6 in the third quarter, it took a pair of second-half defensive touchdowns for the hosts to get some breathing room on their way to a 27-6 win. It was the closest game of the three contested between the two squads.

Despite the struggle, Cooper coach Scott Stewart was happy with what he saw on the defensive side of the ball as the Cougars held the Pirates to 129 yards of offense on 49 plays — an average of just 2.6 yards per play.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 7)

Each week here at Big Country Preps, we’ll post our picks for all of that week’s 11-man games and select six-man games, in addition to the results of our weekly fan polls for each matchup.

Disagree with our picks or the fan poll consensus? Let us know in the comments section below.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Albany travels to Stamford (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country picks)

LAST WEEK: 30-6, .833
SEASON TOTAL: 297-88, .771

ALBANY (4-1, 1-0) AT STAMFORD (4-2, 2-0)

Can you get two more storied programs to square off in the Big Country than Albany and Stamford?

Toss in the fact that it’s an important District 7-2A DII game while both are having successful seasons and our Big Country Preps Game of the Week is an easy choice. 

Stamford’s Bill Anderson Stadium is the venue. Big Country legends Denney Faith (Albany) and Wayne Hutchinson (Stamford) are the coaches. And to the winner? A chance to challenge red-hot Goldthwaite for the district title. 

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by Yale Youngblood, Special to Big Country Preps

FEATURE: Character, chemistry fueling Forsan’s resurgence under second-year coach Casey Thompson

As Forsan rides a six-game win streak into its District 4-2A Division I game at Ballinger on Friday, the undefeated Buffaloes are also eyeing something that didn’t seem likely at this time last season: a playoff berth.

In 2025, under then first-year coach Casey Thompson, the Buffs started 1-4 heading into district play. Then they lost their district opener.

“We had,” acknowledged Thompson, “a rough start.”

Fortunately for Forsan, there’s a very significant “but …” to add, because it was at roughly this time in the season when it became apparent to Thompson, to Forsan fans, and, especially, to the members of the Buffaloes’ roster that a corner had been turned.

The team went 3-1 over its final four regular season games, which entitled the Buffs to add another, in the playoffs, thus fulfilling a goal perhaps only Thompson envisioned as possible to achieve as the October stretch of the schedule played out.

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Hardin-Simmons ‘Player of the Week’ trio all from Big Country

Note: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net.

Ty Thompson

The Hardin-Simmons Cowboys swept the American Southwest Conference Player of the Week honors in football this week — and all three selections were former Big Country Preps athletes.

During HSU’s 58-0 win over the University of Fort Lauderdale last Saturday, Cowboys quarterback Ty Thompson, a sophomore from Graham, passed for 183 yards and three touchdowns. He was named the ASC Offensive Player of the Week after completing scoring passes of 40 yards and 5 yards to Jairdyn Anderson and 15 yards to Harison Brockway, who is also from Graham.

Thompson’s three touchdown passes came in the first quarter and staked HSU to a 21-0 first-quarter lead.

Thompson also rushed for 101 yards on eight carries, including a 51-yard touchdown run.

Through three official games this season, Thompson leads the Cowboys in rushing with 221 yards and three TDs. He also leads the team in passing with 694 yards and six TDs against one interception.

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by Evan Ren

AREA VOLLEYBALL STATISTICAL LEADERS (Through Oct. 7)

Big Country Preps is publishing area volleyball statistical leaders each Wednesday at 7 p.m. throughout the regular season.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches. If your team is missing, please give your coach a friendly reminder to check their email and submit their stats each week by 2 p.m. on Wednesdays. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Cooper battles but falls in four to WF Legacy to close out first half of district play

The Cooper volleyball team closed out the first half of District 4-5A play with a 25-13, 21-25, 25-15, 25-21 loss to Wichita Falls Legacy on Tuesday, but second-year coach Kandice Williams left the Senior Night match at Cougar Gym encouraged by the fight her team displayed.

While an inability to stop extended runs eventually proved their undoing, the Lady Cougars battled through a slow start and bouts of adversity throughout the match to give themselves a chance to force a fifth set before ultimately falling in four.

The loss left CHS at 11-21 overall and 0-4 in district — one match behind Legacy (20-18, 1-3) for the fourth and final playoff spot at the midway point of league play. But Williams saw signs for hope as her team looks ahead to its final four regular-season matches.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Talented youth on full display as Jim Ned outlasts Clyde in five-set thriller

CLYDE — There’s not been anything normal when the Jim Ned and Clyde volleyball teams have met on the court this season.

In their first meeting on Sept. 12, the match was held in Tuscola after a water main break in Clyde left the campus without water, resulting in a dominant sweep for the Lady Indians.

Tuesday’s rematch came less than a week after Clyde coach Courtney Freeman had an emergency surgery, and the veteran coach was still dealing with a lot of pain as she saw her squad push the 20th-ranked Lady Indians to the brink before Jim Ned pulled off a 25-19, 16-25, 25-17, 20-25, 15-12 win at Bulldog Gym.

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by Daniel Youngblood

SIX-MAN REWIND: Newcastle-Jayton, Knox City-Roby games yield thrilling finishes to headline Week 6 slate

In six-man football, where the slightest speed advantage can turn high-profile matchups into lopsided results, you never quite know what to expect week to week. So when the games you’re looking forward to most are competitive for four quarters, it’s a real treat.

Such was the case in Week 6, which saw much anticipated matchups between Newcastle and Jayton and Knox City and Roby come down to the wire to headline another exciting week of area action.

Without further ado, let’s dive into those games and more in this week’s “Six-Man Rewind” column. And when you’re done reading, be sure to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for more information on your favorite team(s).

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Roby’s Weatherly takes this week’s award

Even in an otherwise “quiet” week, six-man players find a way to make a lot of noise. 

With many of our teams enjoying an open week prior to district play, Knox City and Roby got into a knock-down drag-out six-man game, with the Greyhounds winning 86-80. 

So great was this game, that our Big Country Preps Player of the Week emerged from the losing side of this matchup, with Roby quarterback Eli Weatherly taking our Player of the Week award for the Week ending Oct. 3

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by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 6-2A DII WEEK 6 REPORT: Haskell, Petrolia, Seymour all victorious

Haskell 60, Electra 6 — Haskell had its best defensive performance of the year and rushed for 266 yards as a team to dump Electra. 

Haskell raced out to a 52-0 lead in the first half before putting things into cruise control. 

Haegan Pinkerton topped the stat sheet with 121 yards passing and four TDs as the Indians improved to 3-2 and 1-0. 

Electra fell to 0-5 and 0-2. 

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